New Jersey Community Seeking Help To Repair Historic Civil War Church
MIDDLETOWN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – It's one of New Jersey's most historic churches.
In Middletown, the congregation at All Saints' Memorial Church is fighting to restore its history.
It's stood on the corner of a New Jersey intersection since the Civil War.
The peanut stone facade, slate roof, and stained glass take visitors back to another time.
"It's beautiful, it's like a little piece of England dropped right in upper New Jersey," Rev. Debbie Cook said.
Cook is the rector at All Saints' Memorial Church, also known as the stone church.
While her congregation is small, the parishioners have a big passion for history. When the church's original roof began showing signs of failure and the foundation started to crumble, they knew they had to protect the national historic landmark.
"It means so much, it's a wonderful, peaceful place," Lisa Ebeling said.
The church hasn't only touched its parishioners. The community formed a nonprofit called All Saints National Landmark Trust, hoping to raise $2.5 million for repairs.
"People do have a connection with this place. As soon as you remind them, they say 'oh I had a great friend who was buried there or I went to a wedding,'" the trust's Becky Cosgrove said.
So far, the group has raised 20 percent of its goal and construction workers have started replacing the aging tiles on the rectory roof.
"It's a huge undertaking for us to keep it intact, but I think t's important to keep it intact because if you know your history, you know your future," Ebeling added.
The money will also be used to make the campus more wheelchair accessible, so even more people can experience its beauty.
The church was designed by Richard Upjohn in 1863, the same architect responsible for Trinity Church in Lower Manhattan.